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Pure brutalism is bad enough, but in Boston (and to a lesser extent, the rest of the US) we just had to muck it up with fake-traditional touches like brick faci
by hx87 10y ago
Pure brutalism is bad enough, but in Boston (and to a lesser extent, the rest of the US) we just had to muck it up with fake-traditional touches like brick facing that make it look so much worse. IMO the worst part of City Hall isn't the concrete honeycomb superstructure, it's the brick-clad base. Brick is good when its appearance makes structural sense: arches or lintels over openings, proper sills, a combination of headers and stretchers, etc. However it's always monolithic, and the only thing worse than monolithic concrete is monolithic brick. That's why I'll take the BPL extension over city hall any day--at least BPL is purely brutalist and makes no apologies for it.
- stcredzero 10y agoPure brutalism is bad enough I think, just for the building itself, that the Houston Public Library serves its function very well. It is an excellent building for its purpose, and I rather like going there. The courtyard outside, though, is a stellar example of how US culture has completely forgotten how to create public spaces of value. (Why is it that Houston, of all places, seems to be challenged to remember why shade is useful!)
- ghaff 10y agoOne of the things that seems to happen is that there's often a sufficient aversion to businesses making money in public spaces that you end up with barren expanses rather than cafes, shops/stalls, etc. In Boston the difference between the utilization of City Hall Plaza and Quincy Market/Fanueil Hall is instructive. That's not to say that public parks need to be crammed full of commerce but people often need some reason beyond "open space" to go into an area.